new member saying hello

[azriphale]

Well I've been reading this forum for a few weeks so I thought it was about time I said hello. I'm 29 and in London at the moment but will be coming to Phuket in the next month or so, staying for around 6 months. I've found this forum a good source of information, I'm pleased to see theres such a big expat community there too. So anyway, hello everyone I'll be reading this forum daily and fantasizing about being in Thailand until the time comes I'm there for real!

[faultytowers]

Welcome aboard azriphale , if your going to be in Phuket for 6 months our paths may cross , probably in MTB.

[tmontana]

welcome to the site mate, im a nooB also and am heading to phuket in march for 5 and a half months, will defo be going to the MTB to have one of these black death drinks i keep hearing about

maybe ill see you there

alan

[Crustasian]

Welcome aboard.If you are going to be in Patong for six months then go and visit the Hasher House Harriers and find out how to have fun and drink in unusual places.They meet at the Ex Pat and Faulty Towers every Saturday for a day out but hang out there most evenings.It is a good way to meet other ex pats and net working.

[azriphale]

Thanks for the welcome guys, I'll definately be checking out both the MTB and hasher house harriers once I arrive, thanks for the tips

[S1MON]

Welcome to the board, i will see you at some point out there if you are there for so long, i am just wondering what you guys do/did to be able to get so much time off at once, are you between jobs or is this just vacation time off??
see you there

Simon

[azriphale]

i am just wondering what you guys do/did to be able to get so much time off at once

I work in IT and I've managed to convince my boss to let me work online for a while! if it goes well I could end up staying longer

[stevem]

Originally Posted by azriphale

I work in IT and I've managed to convince my boss to let me work online for a while! if it goes well I could end up staying longer

You have read the threads about how bad the internet is on the island??

Before you commit to taking any accommodation, make sure you check out the availablilty of phone lines. Dont take it for granted that you will have one or be able to get one.

Phuket, the IT hub of Thailand. I would hate to see what the rest of the country is like!!!!

[aussie dollar]

welcome to the board

[azriphale]

I've seen a few posts saying that the internet is pretty unreliable, is it really that bad? I was hoping to rent an apartment that already has ADSL set up if that's possible

[dawsey]

Originally Posted by azriphale

I've seen a few posts saying that the internet is pretty unreliable, is it really that bad? I was hoping to rent an apartment that already has ADSL set up if that's possible

Welcome to the forum azriphale.

Have a look at the posts in this thread for more ADSL info in Phuket.
http://www.phuket-info.com/forums/ex...ht=ADSL+Phuket

[anubis]

welcome azriphale

[Crustasian]

The Liontchai Guest House in Soi Paradise has its rooms equipped with full computer suites for business travellers.A friend of mine stayed there last year and was able to work from Patong to his office in London.Liontchai also has two Internet Cafes which are very professional.

[Sirgezza]

Originally Posted by azriphale

I've seen a few posts saying that the internet is pretty unreliable, is it really that bad? I was hoping to rent an apartment that already has ADSL set up if that's possible

Listen to what Stevem tells you. He is in IT and has lived on the island for several years.

Welcome and good luck.

[Mai Chob]

Havent been sihgned up myself for very long but some great info on this site for travellers to los (and isnt it odd when you return home and smile at everyone and some people actually scowl at you!) and welcome!Stevem, where is the best internet cafe in Patong, by the way...

[marc26]

Originally Posted by Crustasian

The Liontchai Guest House in Soi Paradise has its rooms equipped with full computer suites for business travellers.A friend of mine stayed there last year and was able to work from Patong to his office in London.Liontchai also has two Internet Cafes which are very professional.

liontchai actually has 3 internet cafes and you will not find a better run place.

[stevem]

Originally Posted by Mai Chob

Stevem, where is the best internet cafe in Patong, by the way...

In Patong cant really answer that one, there are some suggestions in previous posts. When I have to use an internet cafe, I always use tnet at Central. Fast, reliable and most importantly data SAFE.

[Hobbsy]

ADSL is pretty decent at the mo getting better all the time - our 512k connection to Ji-Net goes down about as frequently as a UK connection (ie: not often).

Powercuts are more frequent and a real pain in the ****!

[Benjy]

For Internet here in Phuket, If you pay circa 4,000 baht per month you can get service to rival any standard 25 quid ADSL line in the UK.

I pay 3,500 Baht for a VDSL line (Copper wire, no phone line) that hooks directly into the fibre network. The company can hook it up to you within 2-3 days of signing up (no weird paperwork or even a phone is needed).

[dizbuster]

Originally Posted by Benjy

For Internet here in Phuket, If you pay circa 4,000 baht per month you can get service to rival any standard 25 quid ADSL line in the UK.

I pay 3,500 Baht for a VDSL line (Copper wire, no phone line) that hooks directly into the fibre network. The company can hook it up to you within 2-3 days of signing up (no weird paperwork or even a phone is needed).

Wow !! That's an expensive way to hook up to the internet

4,000baht being around $100 (£60) per month

[faultytowers]

Originally Posted by Benjy

For Internet here in Phuket, If you pay circa 4,000 baht per month you can get service to rival any standard 25 quid ADSL line in the UK.

Slightly confused £25 x Baht 70.57 (todays rate) = 1764.57

So, if you are going to pay circa 4,000 Baht (£56.68) per month , you should definately be getting a sh*t hot set-up.

[Benjy]

Not really, you'll find most high-tech things cost nearly double in Thailand.

$100 a month isnt that much for a rock solid, decent bandwidth connection in a third world country - Spend that in a night on a meal and drinks.

If decent internet connection isnt worth 50 quid or so to you, then dont bother with it, just get dial-up.

I spend 2,500 on my Satellite TV subscription, 4,000 on my electricity - I think its a fairly good deal really, Considering that everyone in Phuket is constantly moaning about shit connections, when if my connection goes under 180kbps I can ring them up (any time of teh day or night) and get them to fix it.

[Benjy]

Originally Posted by faultytowers

Slightly confused £25 x Baht 70.57 (todays rate) = 1764.57

So, if you are going to pay circa 4,000 Baht (£56.68) per month , you should definately be getting a sh*t hot set-up.

How do you work that out, The average wage in Thailand is very low meaning that uptake of anything that is considered luxurious (like very good internet service) is taken up by very few people, hence a higher price.

Thats like saying that for 800,000 baht you should be able to get a shit-hot brand new BMW because its like 10 years of the average Thai wage, whereas in fact they cost at least twice as much as in the UK.

[faultytowers]

May be I misunderstood your post , but I think that when you mention Baht and £ Sterling in the same sentence , most BMs would automatically be doing the conversion.
And I agree that you would expect to pay higher prices for "luxury" good in LOS.

[Benjy]

I was just saying that it will cost you 55 quid in Thailand (3,500-4,000 baht) to get an internet service as good or comparable to a 25 quid one in the UK.

In Hong Kong, you will get a 10 Mbit line (20-40 times as fast) for around 25 quid (in Hong Kong money).

Sorry as an expat I have to think in Baht for my local expenses, $ for my imported stuff, and pounds (cant find the key) to keep me sane.